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The two million people with a potentially fatal lung-disease who have not been diagnosed could now be identified and treated if the NHS follows a new action plan for respiratory problems.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema, is mainly caused by smoking. It kills around 23,000 people per year, making it the UK’s fifth biggest killer disease.

The Department of Health today published A Companion Document to the Outcomes Strategy for COPD and Asthma, which if followed across the NHS could save an estimated 7,800 lives annually.

The NHS currently spends £1bn a year treating COPD, but implementing the top five actions for COPD patients alone could lead to savings of nearly £1/2 billion over ten years. It costs nearly ten times more to treat severe COPD than the mild form of the disease, so improved diagnosis rates will save money.

Around 3.2m adults have COPD but an estimated 70% - 2.1m people - go undiagnosed. Giving those people a proper diagnosis and treatment plan is a priority for the NHS.

Health Minister Simon Burns said:

“Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of the UK’s hidden killers. Around two million people do not have a proper diagnosis or get proper treatment.

“COPD causes irreversible lung damage and often by the time people are correctly diagnosed it’s too late. The earlier we catch the disease, the better.

“Respiratory diseases are a top priority and we’re encouraging GPs to look for patients who are at risk and make sure they’re properly tested and diagnosed. Better quality care is cheaper care - with proper diagnosis and treatment we can make a big difference in the quality of life for people with COPD and asthma, and save the NHS money at the same time.”

NHS Chief Executive Sir David Nicholson said:

“There are an estimated three million people living with COPD in England, and we want to ensure that best practice is used to improve outcomes for those with COPD and asthma.

“We continue to improve our approach to COPD to one which is proactive and preventative and today’s document will give the NHS additional tools to follow the best practice in diagnosing, treating and managing the condition from its early stages.”

“This new action plan shows that the government is serious about fulfilling the promises made in last year’s COPD and asthma strategy, which we campaigned so long to bring about.

“If left untreated, COPD gets worse over time and can leave people so short of breath that even simple tasks, like getting dressed or walking round the house, can be a real struggle. By looking to improve diagnosis and treatment, this new action plan will therefore not just save lives, but could dramatically improve the quality of life for hundreds of thousands of COPD sufferers nationwide.”

A key part of the new strategy is reducing the variation in COPD diagnosis and care around the country. The north of England has much better diagnosis rates than the south, but also the highest death rates from COPD.

Once patients have been diagnosed doctors can keep them better for longer, for example by using ‘pulmonary rehabilitation’, special exercises or physiotherapy which helps strengthen the lungs.

The NHS should also provide the right interventions when COPD is more serious, and people have an ‘attack’ of COPD (known as an exacerbation), which can lead to further lung damage. This can be done through better provision of a form of artificially aided breathing, called non-invasive ventilation, in hospitals.

The new guidance covers both COPD and asthma as the two diseases can be confused due to similar symptoms. Understanding the similarities and differences will help doctors properly treat the two conditions.

ends

Notes to editors

1. COPD is mainly caused by smoking, but also by exposure to dust and other pollutants, as well as family history.

2. The new Outcomes Strategy is a 45-point action plan to tackle COPD and asthma. It is the practical guide to help the NHS put into practice the original COPD strategy, which was developed in 2011.

3. Patients considered at risk from COPD will be given spirometry - a type of lung test which involves blowing into a tube - as part of their diagnosis.

4. Pulmonary rehabilitation is a special exercise or physiotherapy for COPD to strengthen the lungs of COPD sufferers to help them to breath more easily.

5. Non-invasive ventilation is a form of artificial ventilation for people who are having trouble breathing. A mask is put on the patient’s face and connected to a machine that does the breathing for them. It is different to artificial ventilation, which includes inserting a breathing tube.

6. The UK has the highest prevalence of asthma in the world. Asthma deaths have not dropped from between 1000 and 1200 deaths a year since 2000, yet 90% of deaths are preventable. Almost 40% of asthma deaths occur in under-75s.

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